Taken Over by Darkness
by Valledorthedragon
Summary: A year has passed since Pitch has been defeated, but he is about to make his return. Unable to destroy the children's faith in the Guardians, he resorts to destroying them in combat. But he's lacks any strength of his own. He needs an accomplice. Someone to corrupt and turn into his weapon. His target: Jack Frost.
1. Chapter 1

The Guardians had always expected Pitch to return. Maybe in a couple of decades time, or, if they were lucky, a few centuries. But, they weren't expecting Pitch to return as soon as a year after his downfall.

No longer interested in the children, Pitch's main focus now was revenge. With the Guardians gone, kids would believe in him anyway, so that was just another reason to get rid of them.

Destroying the children's belief in the Guardians had been, annoyingly, too difficult to destroy. But there was another way. The Guardians could get defeated in combat, the Sandman had proven that. However, he wasn't strong enough to hope to challenge them, and win, so he would have to work slowly, discretely, using another as an accomplice.

Jack Frost had proven himself a worthy opponent, more than a match for any who challenged him, and with the nightmares, Pitch knew, to be locked away in his past, he wasn't lying when he said they would have made a formidable team. Cold and dark together, they would have been unstoppable. But since he couldn't get Jack's cooperation willingly, he was going to have to do things the hard way.

One way or another, Jack would do as he was told. Then, one of their very own, their saviour from the last battle, their newest member, would bring the Guardians to their knees...

...and revenge would finally be his.

**Authors Note: Hey! This is my first story! Soo excited! This is more the prologuey type thing with the rest coming as soon as. Oh, just to let you guys know though- this story is finished but I don't want to post it all at once so I'll update daily or as soon as I can if I can't post. Hope you all enjoy it^^ Until the next update (hopefully tomorrow) BYE! ^^**


	2. Chapter 2

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Part 1

Jack shuddered as he sat on the hospital bed. He couldn't stand it any more. The very thought of it- from each second to the next, he dreaded that it might happen again.

It started with the defeat of Pitch.

He was a Guardian, kids could see him- kids believed in him. He had never been happier. During the day, life was bliss. But then came the night. He couldn't avoid sleep no matter how hard he tried. But every time his eyes started closing, he fought to keep them open; because when they were shut everything went dark, dark meant sleep and sleep meant the nightmares.

He could never remember what they were about or what happened in them. The pure terror he felt waking up from one was almost unbearable. Yet he put up with it every day, or, more often than not, twice when the woke him at night.

The change was slow, subtle. He felt groggier than usual, but he blamed the bad night's sleep. His temper grew shorter, that too he blamed on sleep. The slow, throbbing sensation that grew over the weeks could not be ignored, though.

He'd never troubled the others with it, they were busy, and he didn't want to bother them with something so trivial. On the rare occasion they noticed, waking up screaming at sleepovers, they'd believed it to be a one off, as he'd told them, and given him an extra sprinkling of dreamsand that never seemed to work. Headaches he'd sometimes get due to the throbbing were believed to be solved by a bit of paracetamol. In truth, none of it ever worked. He just pretended it did.

He kept it up for quite a while, but his condition steadily worsened. The throbbing growing to an ache, then to stabbing pains, spreading right through his body, so that not a single part of him was spared the agony. The nightmares got so bad, he struggled to stay awake through every day. Every moment spent fighting the battle to stay conscious; a battle he was losing more with every passing day, as his strength and will faded.

Finally, only when he'd collapsed, overwhelmed by the multitude of problems, had the others found out. Then he'd discovered what had been happening to him at night. Pitch had been forcing nightmare sand into him. Every night, grain by grain. Into his blood, through his heart and under his skin. The dark grit had slowly been wearing him down and it had finally succeeded. Pain and a fever brought misery to his every waking hour, spent in the North Pole's hospital bed. He often swore he could feel the sand writhing within him. When he slept, the nightmares were almost enough to make him long for those short agonising stretches when he broke consciousness.

If only pain had been the end of it. If only the pain had finished him, that would have been so much better than what was to follow.

The sand's intended purpose was not to bring pain and despair to the youngest Guardian, but to take over his body and mind. Any pain it did cause him, so much the better. But controlling him had been Pitch's goal all along.

The Guardians hadn't known this at first, and had been frantic to save the young spirit. Trying everything they could, but it seemed to make little or no difference. Then, when things seemed to be turning for the better- his fever going down, and sleeps more peaceful- the first overshadowing began. None of them had been in the infirmary to witness the change, but they all saw it's effects.

Long, dark tendrils of nightmare sand curled through the doors, that were blasted open. They'd rushed over weapons at the ready... and they saw him. Jack-no, it wasn't him- they refused to associate the cheerful winter spirit with the monster they saw before them. Coal black hair, glowing eyes, the same sickly yellow as Pitch's and the once-pale skin ashen grey; nightmare sand curling round and flowing from their master.

A terrifying sight to say the least.

He'd fired blasts of ice around the pole, destroying many toys and injuring many yetis and elves who'd been too slow to get out of the way. The Guardians had managed to subdue him, by knocking him out, before he did any real damage. But the knowledge of what had happened had shaken the Guardians to their core. They didn't know what to do. They dreaded what their friend might do it if happened again, and even more so what they might have to do to stop it.

Jack had come back to himself, shortly afterwards, and when he finally managed to convince the others to tell him what had happened, he wished he had never asked. Every passing second since that moment had been spent with the knowledge, the fear, that that very second could be his last. That at any moment he could be taken over and forced to do Pitch's dirty work. He didn't dare think what that might involve, and he definately didn't want to think about what he might do to the other Guardians, when the time finally came- and their was no doubt that it would.

So, he sat there, on his bed, terrified. Muttering to himself.  
"I can't, what if hurt- no, dont even think about it. Just stay awake, stay awake. I can't let anything happen to them. I have to find a way, have to keep them safe." His gaze, slowly, landed on the staff resting on the bedside cabinet, on the other side of the room. "I won't let myself hurt them. I have to keep them safe, stop myself from hurting them. At all costs. I must do it- I must." Slowly, he stood and walked across the room. "I have to- I must. Got to keep them safe..." He reached out to grasp the wood, as he had done so many times before. Holding it out in front of him with both hands.  
"I have to."

Steadying his resolved, he tightened his grip- and then he felt it. A dark, malevolent presense, slowly draping over his mind. His arms shuddered "No! I have to!" He fought to keep the presense back. Hands tensing and loosening their grip on the staff, as he fought for control over them. He didn't want to do this. He really didn't. The last time, it had been so painful- and that awful feeling of emptiness... but he to keep the other guardians safe. He had save them. Had to do it.

Shaking his head to try and clear the dark thoughts away, he squeezed the wood of the staff, as he brought his head upwards. Taking a shaky, tense breath, he gathered the remains of his will.  
"Jack!" He heard the voice as though from a great distance, it meant nothing to him anymore. Only one thought remained of Jack Frost. He had to do it.

His face screwed up, in preparation of the worst. Then, with the last of his will, he swung his hands round and together.

The snap could be heard throughout the entire workshop. The air suddenly deadened.

North rushed forwards to help the newest Guardian. The snow white hair turned black, as the two broken halves of the staff, clattered to the floor.

**Authors note: first chapter ^^ hope you enjoyed it- I'll be back tommorow with the next oneso until them thanks for reading:-D.**


	3. Chapter 3

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Chapter 2

North called the young Guardian's name again, as he saw him stumble backwards. Black locks of hair, streaking the white.

He was astounded. Jack had willingly broken his staff, his source of power, to keep them safe. It was the equivalent of Sandy giving up his dreamsand; or Tooth, her fairies. He could only imagine how hard it must have been- fighting the darkness aswell as his own will power.

As North watched, the black in the spirit's hair spread across his entire scalp, his skin took on an ashen grey tone, and the, normally ice blue eyes, turned the same sickly yellow as Pitch's. The other Guardians arrived in time to see the transformation complete. Called at the sound of the snapping staff.

The former Guardian looked down at the two broken halves, and kicked them aside dispassionately.  
"Foolish." The boy that looked like Jack said. His voice sent waves of fear through the Guardians- it wasn't Pitch- but neither was it remotely Jack Frost. A not very Jack like laugh came from it's mouth. "What a foolish boy to think that he could stop me, by snapping his little twig." The spine chilling laugh reverberated around the room again.  
"I do not need a silly stick to be able to kill you. I can kill you, with this.." he said, twirling his hand round. Dark sand curled round his fingers, where a snowflake once would.

Cold horror struck North as he realised what had happened. Jack had broken staff- breaking whatever might have been left of him in the process- all for nothing. The Guardians weren't safe. They were far from it; and Jack Frost was gone- destroyed in a failed attempt to save them. All that was left, was this dark shadow puppet.

"So..." The no longer Jack said, a twisted smirk appearing on his face- a sick mockery of the playful one that often graced the spirit's face.  
"Who's first?" he finished, a dark glint appearing in his eyes, as the sand hardened into a sleek, black dagger.

North's expression hardened. This wasn't Jack Frost, anymore, and he wasn't going to let Jack's sacrifice be in vain. He was going to take down this beast. For him. Before he could do anything, a golden whip shot past and attatched itself to the grey arm.

Unfazed by golden weapon, the boy creature wrapped it's fingers round it. A dark grin spread across it's face, as a patch of black appeared amongst the gold. The darkness spread along the whip, until it reached the holder, who dropped it just in time. The Guardians were horrified. Sandy's dreamsand had always been strong enough to overcome even the darkest nightmare. Yet, even as they watched, the black rope became a serpent, which curled around its master's arm. The stolen sand completely under the control of Pitch's puppet.

Enjoying their looks of horror, the boy chuckled darkly.  
"Who's next?" he challenged.

North had had enough of standing around, watching the magic show of doom, it was time to take action. He unsheathed his two sabres, and stepped forwards. The dark boy looked amused, but not at all surprised, by this response.  
"I accept your challenge by the ancient rules of combat." North bellowed. To his surprise, the boy with the face of their friend laughed; leaving North standing there, in confusion.  
"Oh, North. You really think I'd battle you, myself?! No no no, far more entertaining, for me, to watch. I'll set you up with a few friends, and, maybe- if I feel like it- I might step in for the final blow." He decided.

To see the this creature, who looked so much like there old friend, speak such words sent shivers down the guardian's spines.  
"Now then." It considered. "Let's see... a worthy competitor, for the mighty Santa Claus. He snapped his fingers and the snake and dagger vanished- nothing more than a means to spread fear. It continued. "How about a trip down memory lane? To a time when a naughty, young man- king of pillaging and stealing- finally met his match." North's eyes widened in fear, as the nightmare sand, behind the boy, grew into the shape of a collosal, black bear.

North remembered that night well. He had died defeating that beast. He'd brought it down with him, but the very memory of the experience made him shudder. Now, here he was. Reliving the nightmare.

The beast snorted, and charged at North, who turned to avoid the attack. The bear forced him back, until, distant noises, and telltale glimpses, were all that remained of the ferocious battle.

North was a formidable swordsman- arguably the best ever- but, the sheer size and power of his opponent, made this a genuine fight for his life.

The creator of the beast turned it's attention to the fairy, hovering by her companions.  
"Dear, little Toothy." he said. She tried to hide it, put a brave face, as she always did when things got dark- but at the sight of her friend, corrupted and wishing her dead, she felt the mask crumble. She attempted to block out the fear with anger, fury at Pitch for doing this to him, but then the image of the twisted boy worked it's way into her mind. She tried telling herself it wasn't Jack, but the resemblance to the young spirit she'd grown to love was too much. Her best friend- her little brother- was trying to kill her. Her anger subsided, at that thought, to make way for fear. But still she had to stay strong, her Jack could still be there; and she was hoping against hope, he would come back. He'd end this nightmare, he'd fight away the darkness, and shrug off the experience with one of those endearing smirks, and then everything would be alright. She knew Pitch, or whatever this creature was, wouldn't be fooled by her attempts to hide the fear, so she was just going to have to face it. Jack would have wanted her to.

"Such a sweet, little Tweetie Pie, aren't you? Well, I've got just the friend for you- your very own Sylvester." Out of the darkness, behind the not Jack, appeared a jet black, giant panther.

Tooth backed off, in terror, suddenly she didn't feel so brave. She was terrified of cats. She'd lost far too many of her dear little fairies to the creatures, and now one of them was after her. It lunged at her, baring dozens of razor sharp teeth, heading straight for her. A scream of terror escaped her, as she flew away, the creature's savage jaws snapped at the place she'd occupied, just moments earlier.

The remaining two Guardians could see the cat and bird, from the other side of the workshop. Every one of the cat's leaping attacks, narrowly missed the fairy.  
"Tooth!" Bunny called out, after a particularly close shave tore out a few of her feathers.

Sickly yellow eyes, turned to him. The malevolent smirk growing broader.  
"Bunny! I'd almost forgotten about you." It grinned, darkly. Bunnymund was furious. It looked like, he seriously wanted to kick his head in. He reached for a sling that held one of his boomerangs. The dark creature laughed.  
"Awwww, see how he glares at me. You'd just love to throw that at me, wouldn't you." He laughed again. "Go ahead. Throw it. You know you want to." He taunted. Bunny tightened his grip on the oiled wood, but did nothing. The twisted smirk made it's reappearance.  
"Too much of a coward, as always. Oh yes, what was it, you said? Six foot one, nerves of steel, master of tai chi and- what was the last one? Oh yeah, deathly afraid of becoming dog chow." At that point a horrible suspition hit Bunnymund- how had this puppet known that? But right now, he had bigger problems.

As he had been speaking, the boy monster had made a humungous, black monster of a canine, appear behind him. This hound from hell was enough to make Abbie look like a tiny, little chihuahua. It leaped at Bunny, who turned tail, and fled in terror.

Only one Guardian now remained.

Sandy watched his friends fight. The battle went badly for all of them.  
"Soooo, Sanderson." The golden man turned away from the fight, to see the cause of all this destruction, leaning casually against a desk.  
"Time to enjoy the show."

Sandy watched as the bear raked it's claws down North's arm, causing him to bellow in pain, as the sand aggravated the wound. Bunny tore his bleeding leg, from the mouth of the monstrous mutt. More feathers fell from the ceiling.

Sandy prepared to jump over the railing and run to the aid of his fellow Guardians.  
"You could help them, of course." A dark voice, stopped him in his tracks. He turned to see the black haired beast, watching him intently. "Just see how grateful they'll be, when your little sand shows make their problems even bigger." Sandy knew it was right- there was nothing he could do. A wave of helplessness swept over him. He knew the not-Jack-creature was thoughly enjoying his raging emotions, but could do nothing to lessen his fear for the others.

He turned to watch again. North aimed a strike at the bear's stomach. A good swipe that should have cut deep, but instead, the sabre practically bouncing off. Leaving nothing more than a sizable dent in the bear's side, that was soon filled in by more black. It was a similar story with Bunny, his boomerangs barely impacting on the hound at all. Tooth was just too busy trying not to get eaten, to even try attacking.  
"Surely, by now, you've noticed how strong my nightmares are; and are wondering how I got them so strong." Sandy had been wondering just that, when an earsplitting scream reached his ears. "Tooth!" North cried, having knocked the bear over the railings and gained himself a temporary reprieve.

The fairy had decided she'd had enough of running, and gone on the offensive instead. She had charged at the flank of the huge panther- big mistake. Diving, head first, into the monster, had done something truly terrible.

She was hovering, uncertainly, trembling in terror.  
"M-m-my eyes." she muttered. "I-I can't..." Suddenly, Sandy felt as if he'd been punched. She couldn't see. She was helpless. It was only a matter of time before-.

The monster panther caught her fragile figure in it's jaws, her screams of terror echoing around the room- any thoughts of bravery and self control abandoning her, as her lack of vision broke her. Nothing but terror now raced in her mind. The big cat started forwards, bringing her back towards it's master.

Sandy rushed forwards as the panther spat out  
Tooth's limp form at it's master's feet. It hadn't spared her from it's ferocious fangs. They had left long, deep holes in her side, black sand dancing round it as though revelling in her pain. She was shaking without restraint- and the sight sent dizzying waves of horror through the Sandman. All that was left now, was the others.

A loud thump, and a heavy figure crashed, beside her. North, riddled with cuts and bruises. The bear had taken full advantage of his distraction, and tossed over with one, fearsome, swipe of it's paw.

Finally, Bunny half-limping, fearfully, away from the dog beast, turned to search for it- only to have the land on his shoulders. Flattening him to the ground, and holding him there, with a single paw. All four of them lay, together, defeated.

Pitch had finally done it.

He had the Guardians at their knees.


	4. Chapter 4

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Chapter 3

They idly wondered how they were going to die- by bear, by panther or by hound.

But to their surprise, the dark monster, whom no longer held any connection with the boy they once knew, flicked his hand and the three giant nightmares vanished. He walked up to the four defeated Guardians, no longer grinning. A seriousness had come over his face. The look in his eyes akin to that of hatred, as he glared down at them.

Tooth lay shivering on the floor. Bunnymund had a paw around her quivering shoulders, trying to comfort her. His bitten leg trailing behind him, oozing black sand. North lay still, barely conscious. He'd fought until he could fight no more, and he was not the kind of person to give up for the sake of mere pain. He'd had to be beaten into submission, until he was physically unable to fight. Sandy was standing in front of the much larger members, in a final, feeble attempt to protect them.

The silence was suffocating. Any hope of being shown mercy, vanished when the dagger reappeared in the creature's hand.

He was actually going to do it, they realised. He had called off the nightmares, so that he might have the pleasure of finishing them off himself. They looked up at the dark puppet, who had the face of the boy they once loved... and they were afraid.

The horrifying beast spoke.  
"You wanted to know, Sanderson, how those nightmares had become so strong." The look on it's face made Sandy dread the answer. "The reason these nightmares are so strong, is because they are My nightmares." His nightmares? But, this was Pitch speaking- how are these nightmares any different from his others nightmares.  
"These nightmares are the culmination of three hundred years, alone. Three centuries of neglect." The Guardians were suddenly struck with a horrible thought- but they refused to accept it. It couldn't be... The dark boy continued. "Of having no-one, not one soul, to talk to- to reassure you. Three hundred years, with nothing, but a name, and a stick." It was true. It was him. This was Jack Frost.

What they had believed to be nothing but a mindless Pitch-puppet, was actually him. Jack Frost- bane of the Guardians.  
"I struggled through every, single day. Each one filled with fruitless attempts to be recognised every 109,500 of them. 109,500 times I tried to be noticed and asked for a sign from the man up high and 109500 times was I denied."

No, this wasn't him, Bunny decided. This might be Jack Frost, but it wasn't the Jack they knew. Their Jack- the real Jack- wouldn't be so selfish, as to let those thoughts dictate his actions. Still, the truth of what he had lived through, hit them hard. The cold, hard truth. The reality of Jack Frost.

"I try to spend time with the few beings that could ever see me, and what do I get? Thrown out of the pole; avoided by fairies; not so much as a glimpse, of the famous Sandman." It was true. Every word of it; and the knowledge that the had brought this pain, and misery, needlessly, upon their youngest member, destroyed them.

"...and Bunny." the furious Frost, stopped. Glaring down at the broken rabbit. Bunny flattened his huge ears against his head, as he braced himself for the following words.

"You know, exactly, what you have done... and I can remember, every, single, word of it."

He didn't shout, but that somehow made it all the more terrible. Bunny seemed to shrink, the hardened warrior broken, inside and out.

Satisfied, Frost turned to address the others.  
"How does it feel, to be brought down, low? To feel the same pain, I went through, every, single, day, of my immortal life? To be lost, and afraid, and abandoned by everyone." With a last, desperate thought, Sandy turned, to find hatch where the moon occasionally shone, only to find it empty, devoid of all light. Jack Frost, laughed.  
"Yes, go on, Sandy. Pray to your precious, Man in the Moon. Don't be surprised when he doesn't answer." Sandy, ignoring the malice in those words, prayed... Nothing. His last hope gone, Sandy collapsed on the floor. It was over. Pitch had won.

"You see!" The boy sneered. "You haven't got a hope in the world."  
"There's always hope." Bunny shot back, weakly, doubting the words himself. A quick, amused laugh bounced round the room.  
"You don't even believe it yourself, so you might as well just shut up. You're nothing, but a stupid kanga-" He stopped and blinked, confused. Bunny noticed, he hadn't meant to say that. What had he been about to say? Kangaroo! That was always Jack's- the old Jack's- nickname for him. Could it be possible, just possible? That their Jack was still in there?

...and there it was- a spark of hope. And Bunnymund clung to it.

"What was that?" He coaxed. "Kangaroo?" he completed. "That's right! That's what you always called me, remember, Frostbite!" He said, using his nickname for the younger spirit. A curious expression came over the spirit's face. Confusion- but wait... maybe... was it possible, that he saw a flicker of recognition there, too. He pushed on.

"Remember in Jamie's room, when you set that ruddy dog on me?" No doubt about it, at the word "Jamie", there had definitely been some sort of response. He continued, hope growing with every second.  
"Remember the day before Easter, when Sophie broke in, and you were the only one who knew how to deal with her?" Tooth, as the Guardian of memories, immediately grasped the idea.  
"Remember Emma, your sister, you told me about." That had an impact. He stumbled backwards, as though struck. Tooth continued, in her small, terrified voice.  
"You saved her, Jack. You saved her- just like you saved us." Sandy created little sand pictures above his head- visions of dinosaurs and dolphins, fish and snowballs- as he recalled that magical night, when he had chosen to be a Guardian. The message was clear- you chose to be a Guardian, Jack, and only you know why.

The darkness seemed to be faded, struggling to find a way to cling onto it's host.  
"But... three hundred years... alone..." He murmured.  
"I know," Bunny said, voice filled with self loathing, " and it wasn't right, what we did. We shouldn'ta treated ya that way, and I'm sorry!" The room seemed to freeze.

"I'm sorry." Bunny repeated, as Tooth's voice piped up again.  
"Please..." she pleaded, shuddering with silent sobs, absolutely terrified that he might turn on her. "I want you back, Jack... I'm scared." Those two words had finally done it.

He remembered.

He remembered, one year ago, when his first believer had looked up at him, and said those very words.

He remembered, how, three hundred years ago, his sister had done the exact same, from across the frozen lake.

Games. Hopscotch. Falling. Scared. Waking. Moon. Staff. Flying. Lonely. Snowballs. Funtimes. Kidnap. Music. Sleigh. Palace. Teeth. Contest. Abbie. Fighting. Memorial. Easter. Sophie. Darkness. Teeth. Guilt. Alone. Antartica. Broken. Falling. Remembering. Mending. Jamie. Belief. Courage. Sand. Return. Snowballs. Victory...  
... and an Oath.

He blinked once. Twice... and when he reopened his eyes, they were a vivid blue.

**Authors note: sorry forgot to say at the end of the last chapter yes this story is complete but I've just not posted it all yet I'm so sorry if I confused anyone (sorry guest) but I will post a new chapter every day and to make up for the confusion and everything Ill post two tommorow okay^^ sorry again I didn't mean to confuse anyone.**


	5. Chapter 5

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Chapter 4

He blinked. Where was he? What?...

His eyes widened and jaw dropped, in silent horror, as he took in the scene before him.

"Tooth?... Guys?..." The fairy lay trembling on the floor- a large bite wound in her side- in between North and Bunny. North injured, so badly, he wasn't even sure he was conscious. Bunny didn't look as bad, he was leaning upright, staring at Jack; one arm wrapped around Tooth. One of his hind legs trailed behind him, black sand lining a long gash in his foot. Jack was shocked. What had happened here?

He realised he was holding something, and turned to look. He gasped, horrified. In his hand, he held a. Jet. Black. Dagger.

The Guardians defeated in front of him. The dagger in his hand... He'd been about to... The weapon slipped out of his numb hands, dissolving before it hit the ground. Oh god... he'd done this, he thought; looking at the broken spirits.

He wanted to run. He was a monster. He had to get away. Fear urged him to flee but a gentle tugging on his trouser leg drew his attention. Sandy was there, uninjured, thank the man in the moon, but, from the urgent way he was pulling Jack towards the others, he was terrified for his friends. Any thoughts of leaving vanished. The others needed him.

He rushed over.  
"Tooth?" he said as he reached her. She flinched at his voice.  
"Jack?" She whispered, not daring to believe it was him, for fear that her hopes would be crushed, but, at the same time, desperate to know, that her Jack, was standing right in front of her.  
"It's me, Tooth. It's alright... everything's going to be fine." He reassured her, taking her hand in his.  
"Jack!" she breathed, her relief palpable, as she reached out and drew him into a fearful hug, still trembling slightly. He drew her close, forcibly reminded of the times he had comforted his Emma after a nightmare.  
"Shhh, it's alright. It's going to be ok." He shushed. Looking round from her shoulder, he could see Bunny, also relieved, looking at him with... admiration? Surely not. He turned to look at North. He was awake- but barely.

He pulled away from her a little, to smooth her crest down, and saw her eyes were closed; black grit visible between her eyelids. Cold terror rushed through him- No, she wasn't? Raw guilt flooded him. She was blind. The Tooth Fairy was blind and it was. All. His. Fault.  
"It's alright, it's over now." He muttered, comforting himself as much as Tooth. A dark shadow flitted across the room, and it spoke.  
"Ohh but it's only just beginning."

A dark, maniacal laughing filled the room. Tooth tensed, terrified, as Jack, Bunny and Sandy looked round to locate the source of the laughter. A familiar figure detatched itself from the shadows.  
"Hello Jack." Pitch sneered. Jack turned round, looking for his staff- where was it?! The last thing he remembered before he blacked out, suddenly, came back to him. That sickening snap. He was defenceless. He searched for something else to use as a weapon and took one of North's sabres holding it out in front of him. It felt heavy, and clumsy, in his hands, but it was better than nothing. When he looked up, Pitch was gone, only his voice remained.  
"I must say. It is quite impressive that you managed to break free of my control, even if it is rather annoying." Pitch said, smoothly, appearing by one of the pillars.  
"Being annoying is one of my specialties." Jack growled back. Pitch ignored the comment, and looked at the defeated spirits.  
"Look at this precious scene, you've done well, I see. Nice job." The guilt of what he'd done threatened to overwhelm Jack. Pitch chuckled, enjoying his horrorstruck expression. Twin golden whips appeared from nowhere, just narrowly missing Pitch, as he dodged the attack.  
"Although, apparently, not good enough." he snarled. Sandy glared up at him for a second, before launching another, just as ferocious, attack at the Boogeyman.

Nightmares- coal black horses- filled the room. Sandy, valiantly, fought to keep them away from his friends. Jack fought too, reaching out, with the sword, at any nightmare that came close enough. Suddenly, a huge black bear appeared from nowhere. Where did that come from? Jack thought, panicked, and it wasn't alone. A giant panther and savage dog joined it. At the appearance of the much larger nightmares, Sandy, looking worried at their arrival, conjured a great, golden shield above the other Guardians, leaving the sides free for Jack to continue attacking the nightmares. Jack was grateful that he could still help, but he couldn't see a thing, beyond the wall of sand.

A flash of a whip appeared, depositing something at his feet. Correction, two somethings. Two halves of familiar stick. He snatched them up, gratefully. He realised what Sandy was doing, he was buying him some time to put it back together. Wasting not another second, he lined up the twisting pattern winding up the length of the staff... and concentrated...

A couple of moments later, he flew out of the golden shield on a gust of wind, shooting ice at the oncoming mares. Pitch looked murderous. Jack saw a black scythe being formed in his hands, Sandy's back was turned.  
"Sandy, behind you!" Jack called, in warning. He was too late. The Sandman turned, just in time for the scythe to slam into his chest.

"Sandy!" Jack cried, as he sailed off, crashing into a distant wall, and landing heavily on the floor. He wasnt moving. The golden shield that protected the other, injured Guardians vanished.

He was all they had left now, and he wasn't about to let them down.

A gentle cushion of wind lifted sandy and sent him to join the others. That done, Jack flung himself at the masses of dark beasts that filled the giant room.

He shot down stallion after black stallion- his powers had grown after becoming a Guardian, allowing him to keep ice attacks like that up for much longer than usual. There was a terrifying close call, when one of the nightmares broke away from the others, and charged towards the vulnerable Guardians. Jack had only just spotted it in time to avoid catastrophe.

Eventually, the horses died out, and Jack was left with the three giant nightmares. Pitch chuckled as he prepared to face off with the deadly creatures.  
"Fighting your own nightmares, how poetic." He commented. His nightmares? Jack thought. What else had he done whilst he was out? He didn't have time for much else though, as the bear charged.

He dodged the attack and fired a good solid blast of ice at it. To his surprise, the worst of the attack bounced off it, the only impact was a slight dusting of snow which covered the sand that been hit. Uh oh, Jack thought, this was not good. He shot another blast at the big cat, and another at the hellhound, the ice didn't have an affect on either of them. If it was possible for him to be even more horrified, he was. How were these things so strong?... It's because they were his nightmares, he realised, with a sudden fall of heart. They made up the worst parts of his life he'd always tried to forget, and he knew just how dark that was. He knew they'd be hard to defeat.

A roar from behind him, shook him from his thoughts. Distracted, he had allowed the bear to turn round for another charge. There wasn't time to avoid it, and he was powerless to stop the charging beast.

Acting on impulse, he shot up a hand in front of himself, and from his fingertips, came a blast of golden sand.

**Authors note: Here you are ! Next chapter coming tommorow hope you enjoyed these two thank you soo much for the reviews each one makes my day I absolutely love getting them so please do let me know what you think I don't bite^^ also shoutout to my first follower: thank you Reira ^^ I hope you enjoyed these chapters. That's all I can think to say right now so until tommorow then BYE!**


	6. Chapter 6

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Chapter 5

The jet of golden sand smacked into the bears snout, hitting it so hard it veered off course, and sped past him.

Jack was completely stunned- how had done that? He looked down at the Sandman, but the little man seemed just as shocked and clueless as the rest of them. Everyone was gaping at the youngest Guardian, Pitch included.

Jack, experimenting, held up a hand, and focussed. Sure enough, a steady stream of golden sand, flowed from his fingers.

He had absolutely no idea how he was doing it, but a sudden idea struck him. The sand had injured the demon bear! He could fight off his nightmares, with this! He grinned, even chuckling slightly- if those nightmares represented the darkest times in his life, then this was obviously the light. But what were the best things that happened to him in the three hundred years of his immortal life. He knew the answer in a heartbeat.

The Guardians. His friends had always been the best of him. So, he created in his mind, an image of something, which represented the leader of their group perfectly. Big, intimidating, jolly, fearless, caring and great at making toys.

More sand poured forth, and from it formed a huge, golden yeti, not quite as big as the bear, but still a formidable size. In the typical North fashion, naturally, it went for the biggest opponent. Slamming rock sized fists into the mound of black sand that was the bear. Jack grinned, what should he make next?

Bunny was still stunned by the golden sand show going on above his head, even though he'd figured out what was going on not that long ago. Pitch had been feeding Jack nightmare sand for months, when Jack had conquered it, he had gained the ability to bend it to his will.

Bunnymund was whispering to the scared Tooth Fairy, telling her what was going on. Sandy and North were looking worryingly close to falling unconscious, North even more so- Sandy, at least, was moving, but barely.  
"He's just made a dolphin! It's going after the panther!" He shared a look with Sandy. The Sandman had always created dolphins to cheer the young spirit up, he adored the fun-loving creatures, being the Guardian of everything. He looked back up at it, and chuckled.  
"It just gave Felix-zilla one hell of a tail slap, in the face." Tooth managed to smile at that, she particularly hated that nightmare. He paused, eyes widening.  
"Bunny? What is it?" Tooth asked, beginning to panic. A couple of stray, ordinary nightmares were approaching them, whilst Jack was distracted.

Luckily he must have noticed, because a golden unicorn came charging their way. A shoutout to the kids of Burgess no doubt.  
"Nothing, Tooth." he answered. "Jack's just created a unicorn, similar to the ones that, Cupcake kid loves, remember?" A slight scowl came over her face. She was the Guardian of memories, of course she remembered. A slight smile touched Bunny's lips. That was good, it meant she still awake, and her mind was still going. Truthfully, he kept a light, cheerful tone, but he was worried about the state of his friends.

North still wasn't moving, and Sandy's head was sagging from where he crouched in front of Tooth, who was faring no better. The deep bite wound in her side, sapping a great deal of her strength, and, though he didn't like to admit it, he felt no better. His injured leg throbbed and burned, in agony, slowly weakening him, but he kept on talking, keeping the others spirits up. He was the Guardian of hope, after all.

"I don't believe it." he said as another sand figure made it's appearance.  
"That little snow brained block head, he's only gone and made a kangaroo." Surely enough, he had. "Ruddy boxing gloves and everything." He muttered, angrily. Tooth managed to giggle weakly.  
"Has he done anything for me?" She asked. For her? Bunny thought, and then he realised what was going on. Each of the sand figures, represented the Guardians. North- the yeti, Sandy- the dolphin, and Bunny- the kangaroo. He looked around the room for another golden figure.

The golden kangaroo was wisely avoiding the black hound, and had, instead, taken the place of the dolphin, beating up the cat. The dolphin had switched to attacking the dog, the yeti was still wrestling the black bear, and the unicorn was charging any remaining horse nightmares.  
"I can't see anything..." Bunny began, stopping, as a little speck of gold, fluttering around Pitch drew his attention.  
"It's Baby Tooth," he realised out loud, "and she's going after Pitch!" He laughed, gently. "She's doing a good job, too. The ratbag can't keep up with her." The golden miniature fairy was darting around the Boogeyman, jabbing, now and then, at him with her beak. Pitch was getting more and more furious by the minute, but he still couldn't catch the tricksy, little fairy.

The sight made Bunny realise the absence of the Guardian's various helpers. Hundreds of fairies, eggs, yetis and elves were, in fact, trying to fight their way through the barricade of black sand, that stopped them from entering the room, and not making any progress. They were on their own.

The dolphin, shooting up into the air, caught his attention. It flipped over in midair, diving back down again at terminal velocity, before ploughing into the dark mutt. A cloud of gold dust obscured the scene, but when it cleared, the wretched hound was gone' In it's place stood a magnificent, golden wolf.

One of the giant nightmares had finally been defeated! They could be destroyed!

Bunny watched, as the wolf shook itself, and then charged of in the direction of the cat. If the other figures were the Guardians, Bunny had no trouble guessing who this one was meant to be.

The panther had been chasing the sand Baby Tooth, after Pitch had set it on the little creature, when it found itself face to face, with a giant, angry wolf. The sand of fear appeared to be wetting itself, and although Bunny knew wolves couldn't smile, much less smirk, this one was obviously trying to. The resemblance to Frost was uncanny.

Less than a minute later, Sooty the death cat had been reduced to a mewling little sand kitten, and, with six sand figures all ganging up on it, the bear soon followed suit, becoming a tiny cub.

Tooth couldn't see a thing, all she knew about what was going on, was whatever Bunny told her, and what she could guess from what she heard, and her hearing could tell her a surprising amount. She could tell that Bunny, despite his big talk, was scared, from the slight quiver in his voice. She could also tell he was doing badly, as voice was slowly getting weaker. She knew that North and Sandy were in a bad way, as she hadn't heard either of them stir, or say anything, in a long time. But, she could also tell, from the telltale sounds of the gusts of wind he rode, and from the lack of cries of pain, that Jack was ok, still fighting for them, and that thought, gave her strength. Hearing, the glittering sound of the golden sand sparkling around them, she could tell there was a lot of the stuff flying about. This worried her, she knew Jack only had a limited amount of sand in him, and hoped, he was being careful how spent it.

He was. Jack knew the importance of every little grain of the sand, there was just one more figure he wanted to make. The best times of his life just wasn't complete, without his first believer. He summoned the sand, and was just deciding what shape he should use for Jamie, when it stopped.

That was it. He was all out.

That alone wouldn't have been too bad. He already had plenty to work with, but with the sand no longer a part of him, he no longer had any control over it, and the shimmering figures dissolved into thin air.

The room suddenly seemed very empty: no more, no more nightmares... but wait, where was-  
"Boo." A voice whispered, from behind him, right into his ear. Terror struck him, as he turned. Shooting away from the spot, with all the haste of fear- driven speed. But was a second too late.

The sharp blade of the scythe cut deeply into his side. A cry of agony escaped his lips, as black sand entered his bloodstream once more.

The other Guardian's hearts leapt in their throats, and Tooth's heart, all but broke, at the sound. She couldn't see what had happened, and was desperate to know, but Bunny was quiet. Too terrified, or ,more likely, too weak to answer. The others knew what happened though.

Black sand was racing through their recently-returned friends veins, and, this time, it was spreading to kill

**Authors note: up with another one not long to go now (this isn't going to be a massive one but I hope you're enjoying it anyway^^) I actually have reviews to reply to :-D so excited anyway**

**Guest(chapter 3 reviewer from two days ago): sorry I know it says complete and that's cos it's all written I just haven't posted it all I am posting daily though hope the suspense didn't kill you the next few chapters are up thank you so much for reviewing^^**

**Guest(chapter 5 reviewer yesterday): Awww thank you I'm really glad you're enjoying it so much yeah the evil monologue was pretty fun to do ^^ glad you also liked it as for what Bunny said to Jack do you really want me to say every bad he said to him over three centuries ;-D put it this way they weren't exactly friendly towards each other and Bunny gets angry easy Jack likes to rule him up Bunny snaps back ill let you figure out the rest. I will update don't worry ^^ every day I promise there isn't much left of it anyway only a few more (this turned into a mini essay huh oh well happy to answer your questions^^) thanks so much for reviewing it means a lot :-D**

**That's all not loads but I'm thrilled with any review hehe so go ahead if you want I love hearing what you think^^ until tommorow with the next chapter BYE!**


	7. Chapter 7

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Chapter 6

All light in the world suddenly dimmed, as the dark sand took effect. It was like poison, slowly corrupting his system. The pain was indescribable, he could barely think straight, and he was scared. Not for himself, bur for the Guardians. He had failed them, yet again, and he couldn't bear the thought that they were about to die, for when Pitch was finished with him, he would surely finish off the others.

He struggled to stay airborne, swaying and dipping in the air.

Seconds later, he hit the ground, hard. The impact knocked the breath out of him. His staff clattering out of his hands, no longer strong enough to keep hold of it. Pitch's blurred figure entered the his vision, as he panted, struggling to keep himself propped up on his elbows, as yet more of his strength deserted him.

Pitch lashed out at him, destroying his attempt to stay upright. His head collided with the hard floor, sending spots dancing in front of his eyes. He could still see Pitch's dark figure looming over him, savouring his victory over the great Jack Frost.

But, beyond that, he saw an open hatch- a pale white disk, slowly, making it's way into the middle. "Manny." He whispered, in a voice so quiet, he could barely hear it himself, and then, he did the one thing he promised never to do again. He prayed to the Man in the Moon.

"Please." He pleaded. "Please save them... save the others. I don't care about myself anymore, but, they -have - to - live. They deserve to." He could see Pitch sneering above him, but he ignored him, and carried on. "Please, Manny. If anything I have ever done, has made you notice- if you have, ever, cared about me, or them-" His voice faltered, as the sand took it's toll. "Please, Manny." He begged, the words barely audible. "Save them..." His breath was getting shallower. He could hardly form his final words. "...save the Guardians..."

Apparently, Pitch knew he wasn't going to say any more, and had decided he'd gotten all the pleasure out of his death, as he could. The Boogeyman summoned his jet black scythe.

Jack closed his eyes, resigned to the worst. He heard a whistle of air- the scythe was descending.

But the impact never came. A great clang of metal jarred him awake, and he saw twin scythes, blocking the path of the dark blade.

They pushed back Pitch, and a familiar war cry reached Jack's ears, as North launched a furious volley of sword swipes at the Nightmare King.

It could have been the sand making him hallucinate, but Jack was fairly certain, North was glowing- a faint nimbus of pale, white light surrounding him as he fought.

Just when it looked like North would be in trouble, a green- also glowing- blur, shot in from the right. A scream of fury filled the air, as Tooth slammed her fist into Pitch. Knocking him a good distance further than he did the Sandman.

The sight of his friends, alive and fighting, filled Jack with a strength he didn't even know he had. He pushed back the nausea, any pain was defied and ignored. They could do this, they would take down Pitch, together. He grasped his staff, using it to heave himself to his feet, and, with the greatest effort it ever took him, he summoned the wind to carry him. He couldn't let the others have all the fun! He flew over to where, Bunny (also surrounded by white light), was occupying Pitch. It turned out, he did know Tai Chi. Long story, short- he completely ninja-bunnyed out on Pitch, who also had blasts of ice to contend with. Jack was firing them, not quite so strongly as before, at him- and not once did he hit the rabbit. Each one cost him dearly, but he kept throwing them at the Nightmare King, each one slowly getting weaker and slower.

He was quite enjoying himself, even with the pain- and exhaustion, and dizziness, and did he mention the pain? Well, he was in his last moments anyway, he might as well spend them with a smile on his face. Then he noticed Sandy- his golden glow now a gentle white- waving to get his attention, over on the other side of the room. Jack got the message, and, panting with exhaustion, grasped his staff like he was hitting a home run. A swinging motion, and a colossal effort, sent a gust of wind Pitch's way, carrying him straight towards the waiting Sandman.

He caught Pitch, in his whip, before he landed, and turned his straight, unplanned flight, into a spin, Round and round, Pitch flew, until Jack was getting dizzy himself, or was that just the nausea returning. Sandy finally let go, and Pitch sailed out the open hatch. Jack guessed he probably landed somewhere in the middle of the pacific ocean. The Guardians relaxed. He was gone.

Jack was still hovering in midair, staring at the Guardians that were glowing, softly ,with moonlight.  
"He answered." He realised, sounding amazed, relieved and thoroughly shocked.

A sudden pain flashed through him, and he faltered, in the air, clutching his chest. the poison had reached his heart. He started falling.

A content smile appeared on his face, as he slowly faded away.

"He answered..." He whispered, once more, as the darkness took him.


	8. Chapter 8

Rotg fanfic- Taken Over By Darkness- Epilogue

Everything was dark. Everything felt heavy. Everything ached.

His mind was slow, and vague thoughts passed through his head, at a snails pace. Attempting to collect his heavy thoughts, one of them became clear. Was he dead?

He entertained the idea, but decided he wasn't. He'd been dead before, and this wasn't what it was like- besides- things didn't ache when you were dead. Then again, he wasn't feeling too lively either.

He managed to crack his eyes open a little, and found himself staring at a bare, wooden ceiling. Well at least it wasn't a frozen lake, he thought.

He'd just managed to raise his groggy head, and look round, when a door, he hadn't even noticed until then, burst open.

An excitable, green blur, entered the room.  
"Jack!" Tooth cried, face alight with joy and relief. She launched herself at him, at the last minute containing her excitement, and hugged him gently.  
"Baby Tooth said you were stirring, but I didn't think youd be awake!" She said, as she spoke, a tiny fairy chirped happily at the mention of her name, and zipped in to rest on his shoulder, snuggling up against his neck.

He grinned- he was happy to see her too, but he had to know something.  
"What happened?" He wondered. Tooth pulled away, and smiled at him, eyes shining with pure happiness.  
"He saved you, Jack. Manny saved you." He looked confused.  
"But... I only asked him to save the Guardians." He told her, bewildered. She laughed.  
"Exactly. You are a Guardian. You're one of us, now, Jack."She smiled. Baby Tooth snuggled against his neck again, to prove the point. Suddenly, the morning seemed that more brighter, to Jack.

He leaned up, feeling a little better.  
"How do you feel?" She asked, thrilled to see him sitting up.  
"Not brilliant." He admitted, swinging his legs off the side of his bed, and standing up slowly, before realising- he probably looked like a wreck, that was how he felt, anyway.  
"Why, how do I look?" He queried.

Tooth hovered on the spot, with a curious look on her face. It was a while before she answered.  
"You look... perfect." She replied. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. Baby Tooth watched, resting her head in her hands, lost in the land of "Awwww".

The moment was broken, when the door was suddenly thrown open again. The large figure of North strolled in, closely followed by Sandy and Bunny.

"Jack, you're up!" He bellowed. The winter spirit's grin broadened.  
"Hey, North." He managed, before he was swept into a massive, bone-cracking hug. "Ahh, North, crushing me- just a little bit!" He strained. North laughed, in his larger than life way, and set him back down.

Sandy was sending golden fireworks above their heads, but their was another, more reluctant, Guardian, who was secretly just as glad to see him up as the others, attempting to hide in the corner- and Jack noticed.

"What? No hug, Bunny?" He inquired, smirking slightly. Bunnymund had a grin on his face, he was trying, and failing, to disguise with a scowl. He shuffled over, and yanked Jack towards him, giving him a hug big brother style. One hand preventing his escape, the other mercilessly messing up his head.  
"Ahh! No, Bunny- ow, stop it! Cut it out, cut it out!" Jack complained, Baby Tooth squeaking angrily at Bunny, as he did so. "I'll braid your fur!" He warned, and with that, Bunny finally let go. Baby Tooth gave a satisfied nod, as Jack rubbed his head. He was just thinking, thank goodess that was over, when North yelled, "Group hug!"

He found himself with a golden little man attached to his chest, Baby Tooth snuggled harder than ever before. The Tooth Fairy herself, squealed in delight, and threw herself in. Even Bunny joined in, properly this time. Then, North came up, and wrapped his arms round everyone, lifting them all up into his huge embrace.

They were all together again. All of them laughing, hysterically. It was one of those perfect moments, where everyone was happy.

Perhaps Pitch would come back, Jack thought, but with friends- no, a family- like this, he really didn't stand a chance.

The End

And that's it guys! Hope you enjoyed it! It was only short but it was my first and I have got some longer ones on the way. thank you sooooooooooooooo much for reading and a humungous massive thank you to all favourites followers and especially reviewers I really really love all the reviews I have gotten so far and every follower fave-er and reader really makes me happy^^

thanks for reading and expect more daily updated fanfics coming soon- the next of which will be posted today^^ That's all for this one though again hope you enjoyed it! BYE! :-D


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